


Fatherly Instincts

by frozenCinders



Category: Atelier Meruru: アーランドの錬金術士 3 | The Apprentice of Arland, アトリエ | Atelier & Related Fandoms
Genre: Gen, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, warning: very cutesy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-10
Updated: 2017-11-10
Packaged: 2019-01-31 08:11:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,217
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12677910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frozenCinders/pseuds/frozenCinders
Summary: Sterk hadn't been at all pleased when Hanna insisted he was acting like Rorona's father. Rorona, on the other hand, decided to be adopted by Sterk.





	Fatherly Instincts

Meruru squinted at her catalog of items, trying to find the one specific trait she needed to put on a supplement. Amongst all her items- too many, really- did she really not have a single herb with the right healing properties..?

A knock on the door of the workshop snapped Meruru out of her trance and she nearly dropped her list into the cauldron upon being brought back to the world.

"Oh-"

She was about to set her things down and answer the door, but the person let themselves in.

"Ah, Mr. Sterk!"

"Hello, princess Meruru. I came to ask if you were planning on going out soon, as it's been a while."

"Oh... sorry, I've been trying for days to get this recipe right. I swear I have all the ingredients I need, I'm just... combining them wrong. Or something."

"I see... You should at least step out for some fresh air every so often."

"Don't worry, I do!"

"Ah! Sterk!" Rorona exclaimed from the doorway, having just came back from a walk with Totori.

"Welcome back, you two!" Meruru greeted.

"Sterk, stay here! I wanna make you a pie!" Rorona said, running to the cauldron to start synthesizing.

"Aw, you're so excited! Come on, Mr. Sterk, you have to stay! Rorona's pies are so good!"

"They have some... special effects sometimes, but they're mostly harmless," Totori noted for Sterk's sake.

"Special... effects..? I suppose that just comes with alchemy. If you say they're harmless, I can indulge..."

"Yay!"

"Aww, Rorona's so cute!"

Meruru pinched Rorona's cheeks while she was stirring. She'd done it while Rorona had some ingredients still in her hands once and they both ended up covered in soot. There was nothing for her to drop this time, so she just giggled.

Sterk and Totori started their own conversation to the side and Meruru walked back to her own cauldron and continued looking through the catalog.

"Let's see..."

What was she looking for, again? Right, Mender. She'd never seen that trait yet and remembered reading something saying she could combine some traits to get it. Maybe... Wound Healing and Cure-All? Burnt Effect and Fast Heal? Or-

"Wait... ah! Miss Totori is right here!"

"Huh? What do you need, Meruru?"

"Miss Totori! Which traits do I combine to get Mender? I've been trying forever..."

"Really? Why didn't you ask sooner? Just combine Heal level 2 and 3."

"Agh, I should have been able to figure that out by now!"

"All done!" Rorona sang, placing the pie on a plate and running over to Sterk with it.

"Oh, it looks wonderful! ... But, what effect does it have..?"

"It's a secret!"

"A secret..."

Sterk didn't look too assured but took a bite anyway. His eyes had been closed but then his face suddenly lit up.

"F-forgive me, but..! I suddenly have an intense desire to cradle you in my arms..?!"

"Yay, it worked!"

Sterk quickly put his plate down and picked Rorona up.

"Rorona! Would you like to draw together? Or I could give you a piggyback ride through town? It would be my honor..!"

"Huh?! Wait, what was the effect of the pie?!"

"It, um... made him more affectionate?" Totori guessed, just as astonished as Meruru.

"Ah, you two! Why don't I cook dinner for you tonight? You work so hard, it would tear my heart in two if you overexerted yourselves."

"Wha?! I-I mean, you can if you want, but-"

"No..! How presumptuous of me! Rather, how preposterous! For me to adopt a princess as my daughter, it would be as if I were claiming to be a king!"

"Wait, what?!"

"Hanna said Sterk was acting like my dad the other day, but he didn't like it. So I made him wanna be a dad!" Rorona gleefully explained as she climbed onto Sterk's back.

"Ah, would you girls like a brother? There have been times where I felt almost like I could consider Gino my adopted son."

"Huh, really? I never heard you say anything about that... That's kind of cute," Totori said, bringing a hand up to the side of her face.

"It's way cute! This new version of Mr. Sterk rules!"

"P-please... get off of me."

"Huh?! But you were so excited to have Rorona on your back a second ago!"

"Aw, it wore off! Eat more pie, Sterk! Quick!"

"No, I, uh... Actually, I should check up on Gino's training. It's not something such a small child should be involved in, so please..."

"Aw, no fair..."

Rorona slowly climbed down looking like she was about to cry.

"D-don't worry, Rorona! I can be your big sister! Here, do you wanna get on my back?"

"No! I want Sterk to be my dad!" she yelled. It was beginning to sound a lot like a tantrum.

"... If you'll excuse me," Sterk said, dashing out the door.

"Come on, big sisters are way cooler than dads!"

"No!"

"Then... then how about a mom?!"

"Nooo!"

"Meruru... I think we just need to let her calm down."

"Aw..! Rorona, let me be your big sister..!"

Meruru couldn't say she wasn't envious. Why did Rorona want Sterk as a father anyway? For a good while, he was quite overzealous about protecting Meruru from all things at all times. She hated to imagine what having him as a dad might imply.

"Oh, maybe that's the way to cheer her up!" Meruru realized, face brightening. "Rorona, Sterk would make a boring dad anyway!"

"Huh?"

"Yeah, he wouldn't let you do anything on your own or have any fun or, or enter a weapon shop or synthesize unsupervised or-"

"Meruru... are you alright?"

"I-I'm fine! ... Now, at least."

"Huh... I want to have fun..." Rorona said, contemplative. "Dad Sterk seemed fun before, but maybe he wouldn't be..."

"See? It's nothing to cry about!"

"Then I want big sister Meruru!"

"! Really?! Aw, I'd love to be your big sister, Rorona!"

"Eat this pie!"

Meruru recoiled at being offered the pie Rorona had given to Sterk.

"Uh... I'm not hungry right now, actually! But I don't need a pie to act like a big sister!"

"But I worked really hard on it..."

"Oof... d-do you still want a dad? I bet Mr. Gino would be a fun dad! Let him eat it!"

"Gino can be my big brother!"

"Yeah! So, let's go find him and-"

"Gino is doing training stuff with Sterk."

"O-oh, right." Unless that was just a hasty excuse on Sterk's part, which seemed likely.

"So you have to eat it!"

"... Miss Totori, help me!" Meruru begged.

"Don't be such a baby, you already saw it doesn't even last long. It'll be fine!"

"A-alright... here goes..!"

She took a bite... and really didn't feel all that different. But she should probably act otherwise.

"Wow! I'm feeling especially sisterly now!"

"Yay!"

"Alright, Rorona! Let's draw together!"

"As for me..." Totori said, "I think I'm going to find Gino and ask if Sterk ever expressed what he said before. If any pair of adventurers were to be adopted siblings, it'd be us..."

"Uagh, n-not on my face!" Meruru yelped as Rorona tried to draw a heart on her cheek.

"I'll do a star on the other side!"

"Well... maybe I'll stay for just a bit longer," Totori said in almost a mumble.


End file.
